Own Your Sound: Master the Business of Music

Join attorneys and music industry veterans Max Hass (Holon Law) and Dave Ratner (Creative Law Network) for this master class covering everything you need to know to win in the music industry. Learn about the law and business of music to secure your rights, collect your revenue, and have a successful career. Brought to you by Colorado Attorneys for the Arts (CAFTA) and Colorado Music Industry Alliance (CMIA).

These free, virtual sessions will be held weekly on Monday nights from 6:00 – 7:30pm from March 3 through April 7, 2025. Sign up in advance for any or all of these sessions.

Session Schedule

• WEEK 1 / March 3: Music Copyright and Contract Fundamentals. Understand the rights you have in your music, the contracts that control those rights, and the money that flows from those rights.
• WEEK 2 / March 10: Publishing, Split Sheets, Publishing Deals, PROs, and Mechanicals. Writer’s share? Publisher’s share? ASCAP? BMI? MLC? We’ll cover all of it!
• WEEK 3 / March 17: Masters, Session Musician Agreements, Record Deals, and SoundExchange. Master your master rights! This session will cover everything related to your sound recordings.
• WEEK 4 / March 24: Producer and Engineer Agreements, Synch and Master Use Licenses, and Sampling. When it’s time to record, what do you need to know? This session covers everything related to the contracts and deals for recording.
• WEEK 5 / March 31: Management, Booking Agent, and Live Performance Agreements. Contracts, contracts, CONTRACTS! You need to know these deals and we’ll explain them all.
• WEEK 6 / April 7: Running Your Band Like a Business: LLCs/Corporations, Band Agreements, and Trademarks. This session is all about the business behind the music. We bring it all together in this final class.

This program is supported through a grant from Denver Arts & Venues .